A Journal from Haiti: Day 1, Part 2

A Journal from Haiti: Telling stories the world should hear.

Experiences and thoughts on the journey translated into words to the best of my ability.

6/22/13

Day 1, Part 2

We continued on our journey to our home for the week--the 410 Bridge house in Cabaret. When we arrived we got a tour of the house and met the staff: Eve, the security guard, and the ladies, Madame Zet-Zet, Madame Ket-Ket, and Madame Celine. Celine is the only one on staff who speaks English. Hopefully that means we'll me learning lots of Creole! We spent the afternoon/evening getting settled in and getting to know William and Watson.

William is a 30 year old deaf man, training to be a pastor. He is a leader in Leveque. He is from Carrefour, a coastal town just west of the epi-center of the earthquake.. He told us Leveque's story.. He explained to us how the deaf in Haiti are looked down upon, how people believe they are incapable, and how difficult it is for them to get an education and find work. When the earthquake hit things became worse. They struggled to find food and water. Many of them came together to help one another. As word spread, more and more deaf from the Port au Prince area began to assemble together in tents and the group continued to grow. The Red Cross stepped in and built 12x12 temporary wooden structures for the disabled--blind, deaf, and physically disabled. This community, just outside of Port au Prince is called La Piste. There are still many families living there 3 and a half years after the earthquake. (Do the math--that's 144 square feet for a family to reside in!) As recovery efforts continued and relief organizations began to help Haiti rebuild, the 410 Bridge got involved with helping the deaf. They began partnering with Mission of Hope to plan Leveque, a permanent community in a rural area almost an hour north of Port au Prince. Leveque is a community for both deaf and hearing families who were displaced by the earthquake. It is unique in that there is no other place in the world that this many deaf individuals live together. It is an amazing story--one that is not yet over. William is among the 140 deaf families who have left the city to make their new home in Leveque, at least 40 more are in La Piste still waiting.

As William told his story, the four of us sat captivated. We had all read the story of Leveque online, but watching it told in Haitian Sign Language (HSL) by a leader in the community was more than surreal. We were exhausted from our day of travel, but didn't want to miss a word. I'm pretty sure I had to remind myself to blink a few times! This was our first real exposure to HSL, the language we will be using all week. Kathryn helped us out by voicing parts of the story when she thought we might not be familiar with the signs he was using, and I started to make a few mental notes about signing differences. William continued on to tell us that he and his wife were married in February and how the community raised funds for solar lights so they could communicate in the streets after dark. One night in March, someone heard a baby's cries coming from a pit latrine. William (being deaf) didn't believe them, but after shining a light into the latrine, he discovered there truly was an infant deep inside the pit.

They tried to make the hole bigger, but debris began to fall on the abandoned baby. They would have to find another way. Eventually William was able to lasso a rope around the baby's tiny ankle and pull him to safety. The newborn was sick and swollen from the fumes, but thanks to William and others he survived and was named Wilson. William beamed with pride as he told us the story of Baby Wilson. And we all sat awed by every detail. Baby Wilson was adopted by William's family. He is now three months old and seems to be healthy and growing. Wilson is a true miracle--one I hope we will have thee opportunity to meet.

We had our first Haitian meal for dinner. Rice, chicken, and watermelon. Yep, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna love Haitian food (and these sweet ladies who work hard to prepare our food)! After learning the names for everything we were eating in both Creole and HSL, we asked Watson how he learned to speak English so well. His response--he taught himself from some books and then started to really study English 6 months ago. Wait, I'm sorry--what!? You mean you haven't been studying English your entire life? I lived in Germany...and my Deutsch is TERRIBLE! I took a year and a half of Spanish...and my Espanol is conversational at best. And I took 4 years of French...and can barely speak en Francais at all! You've been studying English for 6 months and 2 months later started working as an interpreter!? Say what!? How in the world are you so fluent!? Motivation and commitment sure do make a difference. We (Americans) ought to be ashamed of ourselves. That whole foreign language requirement in schools thing is a joke. Why do we even bother. I digress.

Education here, and in most developing countries, is a privilege. Watson didn't attend school until he was 10 years old. Why? Is school not required in Haiti? Well, technically it is. The constitution states that school is to be compulsory (for primary students) and free. But the government lacks to funds to support these mandates. There simply aren't enough public schools to provide all (or even most) children with an education. In order to get an education, children must pay tuition to attend privately run schools, which make up well over 80% of the schools in the country. In other words, schools cost money--money that most Haitians don't have. (Just one of the many reminders of how blessed Americans are and how much we take for granted.) Most Haitians who have the opportunity to go to school only attend through 6th grade. In fact, only 20% of Haitians attend secondary school. Watson was lucky enough to be a part of that 20%. It's a blessing that Watson shows he values deeply. He demonstrates his thankfulness and his servant heart by tutoring boys who can't go to school and making sure his nephew has the chance to get an education.

Watson told us of his passion for languages and for his country. He talked about his dreams of Haitians working together to improve their country. While he would consider furthering his education in the United States, he always wants to come home to Haiti. He said, "I know I am human and the world is mine. But Haiti is my house and I have to take care of her." I love that. Watson gave us a lot of insight into the lives of Haitians. I'm thankful for his stories and honesty. They help us understand the experiences and culture so different from our own. I think that is vital for us as we begin our work here. I know that he will not need to act in his typical role as an interpreter this week, but his perspective and wisdom will be invaluable to our team.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to spend today getting to know the other girls and Watson and William and for the down time we had to begin mentally preparing for our work here. After dinner, we hung around outside for a bit. Laura tried to climb the mango tree and we met some chickens, which I'm sure we'll see again later this week (on our plates!)

Snapshots of our evening as we settled into our home for the week.

It was a great day, but I was grateful when it was time to shower and head to bed. I was even more grateful that I remembered to pack a flashlight once we ventured back outside to take showers long after the sun had set! As I climbed into my top bunk and tucked myself into my mosquito net, I realized how fortunate we were. We are staying in a house with toilets, showers, and a generator that allows us to use the lights, fans, and AC at night. Yep, I said AC. I feel like we're being a little spoiled, but I'm definitely not going to complain!

Tomorrow morning we will go to the deaf church in Leveque. I am excited to see Pastor William preach. His prayer tonight showed the passion in his heart. We'll get a chance to meet his wife and some of the deaf at the church and in the community in the afternoon. I can't wait. We'll spend the evening making final preparations for the deaf education workshop we'll be leading. I'm still not sure I know what to expect, but I do know it will be amazing.

I am so very thankful for this opportunity. I know this week will be life-changing. I'm sure it will fly by. Although I'll try to find the time to journal, I know there won't be enough time to get it all down each night. And even if I had hours to write, I know I'd never be able to remember or articulate it all. We've only been on this beautiful island for 12 hours and I'm already sure I'll be returning.